Falcons team news

Posted on Mar 21, 2013 in Newcastle Falcons

Adam Powell will make his Newcastle Falcons debut in tomorrow night’s RFU Championship clash with Nottingham at Meadow Lane (kick-off 7.45pm).

The 26-year-old centre who has made the move north from Saracens is one of two changes as the Falcons aim to maintain their unbeaten run going into the play-offs.

Gloucester-bound James Hudson misses out through injury with Sean Tomes getting the nod in the engine room.

“Nottingham are a good side and they have a lot of quality players at their disposal,” said director of rugby Dean Richards.

“They have a really good, well-balanced team that plays a good brand of rugby, and the pitch at Meadow Lane has enabled them to play good rugby all year,” he added.

Richards’ men defeated Nottingham 29-9 in the reverse fixture back in November, and the Falcons boss is expecting another stern test against the East Midlands club.

“It is no surprise to see them where they are,” Richards said of second place Nottingham.

He added: “It is actually a surprise to see how they have slipped up on a couple of games this season, games that they probably should have won.

“They are a good team with good coaches.”

Newcastle come into this weekend’s clash on the back of an edgy affair with Bedford Blues a fortnight ago, in which a Noah Cato try and a Jimmy Gopperth conversion in the dying embers of the game ensured the Falcons’ 100% record remained intact.

Richards said: “After the Bedford game we spoke to the players about how we can control the game better, and I think it is fair to say that we went a little bit off-plan against them which is disappointing, but at the same time the boys know exactly where we went wrong.

“They understand how they can put things right this week, and they are itching to get out there and show what they can do.”

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Tom Catterick, 14 Noah Cato, 13 Adam Powell, 12 Jamie Helleur, 11 Ryan Shortland, 10 Jimmy Gopperth, 9 Rory Lawson, 1 Jonny Golding, 2 Matt Thompson, 3 Oliver Tomaszczyk, 4 Sean Tomes, 5 Scott MacLeod, 6 Mark Wilson, 7 Will Welch (c), 8 Ally Hogg

Replacements: 16 Rob Vickers, 17 Kieran Brookes, 18 James Goode, 19 Ollie Stedman, 20 Warren Fury, 21 Joel Hodgson, 22 Alex Crockett

Wasps’ Simpson set for the 100 club

Posted on Mar 19, 2013 in London Wasps

At just 24-years-old, Joe Simpson is set to make his 100th appearance for the Club in this weekend’s game against Northampton Saints.

Having joined the full time Academy setup in 2006, making his debut against Newcastle Falcons in 2008, Simpson has been an integral part of the London Wasps DNA for what is, in the world of professional sport, a sizeable period.

The form of the team this year is a by-product of the faith shown by some of the most talented youngsters in the squad, including Simpson, who signed on for more even when the Club was struggling, and it is clear that his 100th appearance is something he’s hugely proud of.

“I see myself as a big club man. I have been at this club for a long time and as such I am massively proud of the fact that I will have represented it 100 times. Wasps helped me from being a youngster through to being a full time professional and has given me many of the things that I craved as a young kid; helping me to represent my country through the age groups and then earn my international cap for England.”

After losing to London Irish and Worcester in the last two outings, before the two weeks off during the final stages of the LV=Cup, London Wasps now return to action with three games which are undoubtedly massive.

Three fixtures at Adams Park against Northampton, Saracens and Leinster are clearly going to test the Club to its limits. Despite their most recent displays not being at the level the squad have set for themselves, Simpson says that he and his fellow teammates are looking forward to proving themselves against some of the biggest names in European rugby.

“This is going to be a bruising couple of weeks for us, it is going to test the whole squad both mentally and physically and is going to test the depth of the squad because we aren’t going to be able to field the same fifteen players for all of those games. There are going to be some hugely difficult games against sides who will have been boosted by the return of their international players so we will be facing those sides at their strongest. There’s no doubt that the next three weeks are going to test us and I think that they will really give us an indication of where we are.”

First up are Northampton, which is a big one in terms of the Aviva Premiership table. Fifth place plays sixth place in an encounter which sees two sides who have produced some dazzling performances against the top names, and slipped up against the sides towards the bottom of the table, come face to face. It is clear that Simpson has no doubt in his mind about the rewards on offer.

“Northampton can beat any of the top sides but have slipped up against some of the lesser sides much in the same way as we have, so they will be as keen as we are to get a result from that fixture, which would see them leapfrog us in terms of the table. There are also going to be some huge individual matchups for some guys who are looking ahead to international selection for the EPS squad, wanting to prove themselves against their opposite numbers so there is going to be no love lost when the two sides face each other. There’s no doubt that it’s going to be a hard fought encounter; there’s a lot at stake.”

Newcastle Falcons welcome back skipper Will Welch to starting lineup

Posted on Jan 11, 2013 in Newcastle Falcons

Newcastle Falcons welcome back skipper Will Welch to the starting line-up for Saturday’s British and Irish Cup clash with Connacht Eagles at Kingston Park (kick-off 3pm).

The 22-year-old talisman has made a full recovery from a back injury which has put paid to the majority of this season.

Falcons boss Dean Richards has made six further changes with Tom Catterick, James Fitzpatrick, Andrew Higgins and Warren Fury all coming into a new-look backline.

Scott MacLeod is the only other change in the pack, replacing towering lock James Hudson who drops to the bench.

Welch is delighted to be back in the mix after a lengthy spell on the side-line, saying: “It’s great to be back and it’s not been the best of starts for me this season, but I’m fighting fit and ready to go now.”

“I got 25 minutes at Doncaster and I was blowing a bit, but I should get up to speed after a couple of games,” he added.

Victory for the north easterners this weekend will seal their place in the quarter-finals of the competition.

Falcons director of rugby Dean Richards said: “After scoring four tries against Doncaster and getting five points, you can’t ask for more in some respects, but there’s room for improvement and the players know that.”

“We’ll try our best and hopefully get the five points, which has been happening quite a lot this season, but it’s really not about that and it’s the performance that we’ll be focusing on,” he added.

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Tom Catterick, 14 Luke Fielden, 13 Tane Tu’ipulotu, 12 James Fitzpatrick, 11 Andrew Higgins, 10 Waisea Luveniyali, 9 Warren Fury, 1 Jonny Golding, 2 Rob Vickers, 3 Oliver Tomaszczyk, 4 Carlo del Fava, 5 Scott MacLeod, 6 Mark Wilson, 7 Will Welch (c), 8 Richard Mayhew

Replacements: 16 Michael Mayhew, 17 Scott Wilson, 18 James Hudson, 19 Chris York, 20 Rory Lawson, 21 Joel Hodgson, 22 Alex Crockett

RFU Championship to lead RefCam trial

Posted on Dec 19, 2012 in Championship, emb

The RFU Championship will trial the first ever use of “RefCam” in a live rugby union broadcast when Newcastle Falcons take on London Scottish this Sunday, December 23. KO 315pm.

Continuing to bring supporters closer to the action, the RFU Championship fixture will show live footage from a camera placed on the shirt of match referee Matt Carley, including close-ups of the scrum in particular. As well as increasing the viewing experience for supporters and helping them understand the role of the referee, RefCam will crucially provide a vehicle for referees further down the leagues to gain valuable insight into professional refereeing.

Commenting on the new project Head of Professional Referee Development Ed Morrison said:

“This is an exciting development and one that we’re excited to trial. Not only will it offer a new perspective for viewers but it will also provide us with an additional tool which can be utilised within the on-going development of our referees."

Gus Williamson, Executive Producer, Sky Sports Rugby Union, also commented:

“At Sky Sports we are always looking to introduce broadcast innovations that add depth to our coverage and this will certainly help viewers understand the decisions that referees make. We are excited about working with the RFU and we are confident that rugby viewers will be fascinated by this new way of watching the game.”

Newcastle Falcons vs London Scottish, Sunday December 23, KO 315pm. Live on Sky Sports 3 HD.

Picture: RFU referee JP Doyle

Only one change high flying Falcons

Posted on Nov 29, 2012 in Newcastle Falcons

Andrew Higgins replaces Ryan Shortland on the wing, the only change for Newcastle Falcons as they aim to continue their unbeaten record with victory over Plymouth Albion at Kingston Park this Friday (kick-off 8pm).

Promising youngster Scott Wilson comes in for Oliver Tomaszczyk on the bench, while Taiasina Tu’ifua, Rory Lawson and Suka Hufanga are also amongst the replacements after returning from international duty.

Ally Hogg continues to skipper the side in the absence of Will Welch, who is now in full training after a back injury.

Plymouth make the trip north on the back of a 21-8 defeat at home to Bristol last weekend and remain sixth in the table. Harbouring ambitions of a play-off berth come the end of the regular campaign, director of rugby Nat Saumi will be hoping his troops can give a good account of themselves on Tyneside.

Falcons boss Dean Richards is under no illusions about the task in hand, saying: “Plymouth are a very physical side, and they certainly play with a lot of physicality up front.

“We have to look at what we’re doing and analyse what we do week in and week out rather than focussing too much on what the opposition is doing.”

After returning from Jersey last Sunday where they snapped up a bonus-point triumph, it has been a quick a turnaround for the north easterners.

Despite this, Richards insists his side are in tip-top shape for the visit of Albion.

He said: “The boys had a bit of a rest on Sunday on our flight back to Newcastle and we were back in training on Monday.

“The boys had a rest on Tuesday before getting back into it ahead of Friday’s game – we have had a good week’s training and we have just been looking at ways we can keep improving as a team.

“Even though the weather in Jersey wasn’t great, we scored some quality tries and we could be quite pleased with the way things went.”

Newcastle Falcons: 15 Alex Tait, 14 Luke Fielden, 13 Alex Crockett, 12 Jamie Helleur, 11 Andrew Higgins, 10 Jimmy Gopperth, 9 Warren Fury, 1 Grant Shiells, 2 Matt Thompson, 3 James Hall, 4 Sean Tomes, 5 Scott MacLeod, 6 Chris York, 7 Mark Wilson, 8 Ally Hogg (c)

Replacements: 16 Michael Mayhew, 17 Scott Wilson, 18 James Goode, 19 Taiasina Tu’ifua, 20 Rory Lawson, 21 Joel Hodgson, 22 Suka Hufanga